Metal make-ready blanket



Sept 12, 1967 H. B. BALSLEY METAL MAKE-READY BLANKET Filed May 18, 1965 -Henry B. Bols/ey @M/mg 19mm United States Patent C) 3,340,805 METAL MAKE-READY BLANKET Henry B. Balsley, 7233 Woodlawn Ave., v Hammond, Ind. 46324 Filed May 18, 1965, Ser. No. 456,869 6 Claims. (Cl. 101-407) ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE A make-ready blanket including a corrugated packing sheet of stilf but flexible and resilient material With the corrugations dening parallel alternate rises and valleys 4and being formed by smooth alternate reversing bends formed in said sheet, each of said rises including ya pair of longitudinally spaced and transversely extending kerfs or notches formed therein terminating downwardly above the lower portions of said valleys and a smooth stiff but resilient and flexible sheet disposed in `overlying relationship to the rst sheet.

This invention relates to the printing art and especially to a novel spring steel packing to =be used in connection with impression printing cylinders, for letter-press, offset printing, and the like.

In the past, make-ready work in the printing art involved rst running a copy off on a press, so the pressman could see and mark any low spots on the copy, easily designated by various degrees of light ink impressions. In turn, a rfeeder, in response to various marked areas, applied by hand various thicknesses of make-ready to spots or areas needing attention, so that all areas would be raised to an equally even standard. A second copy was then run through the press, and the process repeated until an evenly inked impression copy resulted'. This process involved much time, labor and expense.

An object of this invention, therefore, is to provide a make-ready blanket'to be used with impression printing cylinders which will eliminate the necessit-y for hand make-ready work.

In accordance with the rabove object, an object of this invention is to provide a spring lsteel backup packing which may be attached to a printing cylinder to provide a resilient printing surface for said printing cylinder.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a flexible make-ready lblanket which is readily `adaptable for use with existing printing cylinders by permanent attachment thereto, as well as bein-g permanently built on new impression rollers.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a novel impression cylinder for printing which saves time and money by eliminating the necessity for hand makeready work.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a strong, lightweight, inexpensive make-ready blanket which may be readily and permanently attached to existing and new impression printing cylinders for use therewith.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in Which:

FIGURE l is a diagrammatic View, partially broken away to show the three layers of the make-ready blanket comprising the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially along the plane of the line 2 2 of FIGURE l;

FIGURE 3 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially along the plane of the line 3 3 of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a view similar to that of FIGURE 2 illustrating the invention in use; and

3,340,805 Patented Sept. 12, 1967 ICC FIGURE 5 is a view similar to that of FIGURE 2 showing a modified form of the present invention.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, FIG- URE 1 shows in plan the three layers of the make-read5 blanket; the bottom layer 10, the middle layer 12, and

the upper `or outer layer 14. The blanket, in use, will be mounted in a suitable manner on an impression cylinder, indicated generally at 16.

Bottom layer 10, in a preferable form, is a corrugated spring steel sheet 18, having full length alternating ribs or upper rises 20 and valleys 22 evenly distributed across the surface of the corrugated sheet. Series of aligned notches or saw kerfs 24 are provided transversely across the upper rises 20 of the corrugated sheet, these notches 24 terminating above the valleys 22 so as to not sever the sheet entirely. In this manner, the notches 24 define a plurality of upwardly projecting independent land areas 26, each capable of resilient substantially independent yielding to pressure.

Second l-ayer 12 is a smooth sheet of thin gauge spring steel 27. This sheet 27 is placed in overlying relation to corrugated sheet 18, and rests on the independent land areas 26.

Top layer 14 is tympan paper 29, the use of which is wel-l known to those skilled in the art. This tympan paper 29 surrounds and holds sheets 18 and 27 rmly and xedly to the impression cylinder 16.

It is readily discernible, therefore, that sheets 18 and 27 provide a flexibly resilient, automatically adjustable surface for impression cylinders 16, which provides automatic levelling up on the impression cylinder as a paper is passed thereover during a printing operation.

FIGURE 4 illustrates a make-ready blanket of the present invention in operation. The platen, generally indicated at 28, and impression cylinder 16 are pressed together during the printing operation. The make-ready blanket provides a substantial degree of resiliency under tympan paper 14, on which is placed the paper to be printed, and thereby allows even distribution of ink on the paper.

FIGURE 5 illustrates an alternate embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the single corrugated spring steel sheet 18 is replaced by rst and second superimposed corrugated spring steel sheets 32 each including kerfs 36 similar to but wider than kerfs 24, with the upper sheet 32 being inverted and with the lands of each sheet being received within the wider notches or kerfs of the other sheet so as to double the number and locations of the spring supports and provide a great degree of resilient liexibility for impression cylinder 16.

It will be readily appreciated that the make-ready blanket comprising the present invention may be made of yany size to rit the peripheral area of any impression printing cylinder.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modiications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired tov limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A make-ready blanket comprising a first resilient packing sheet, a second stilf but llexible packing sheet disposed in overlying relationship to said rst packing sheet, a tympan sheet disposed in overlying relationship to said second packing sheet and adapted to hold said rst and second packing sheets against a printing cylinder or bed whereby a flexible impression surface may be formed thereon for automatic adjustment during printing operations, said first packing sheet comprising a corrugated sheet of stiff 'but bendable and resilient material having parallel alternate rises and valleys evenly spaced thereover defined by smooth alternate reversing bends formed in said corrugated sheet and further including evenly laterally spaced apart transverse kerfs formed through and spaced longitudinally along each of said rises terminating downwardly above the lower portions of said valleys and extending at generally right angles relative to the corrugations of said corrugated sheet whereby said rst sheet is rendered substantially resilient, said rises contacting the second packing sheet and the said valleys being adapted to engage and be supported by a printing cylinder.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein said second packing sheet comprises a smooth spring steel sheet which overlies and contacts said rises.

3. The combination of claim 1 including a second corrugated sheet similar to and inverted relative to said irst corrugated sheet and disposed between the latter and said second packing sheet, said second corrugated sheet also defining parallel alternate rises and valleys evenly spaced thereon formed by smooth alternate reversing bends formed in said second corrugated sheet and includin-g laterally spaced kerfs in, extending transversely of and spaced longitudinally along its rises and terminating downwardly above the lower portions of said valleys, the kerfs in said corrugated sheets deiining notches and land areas spaced along said rises, said first and second corrugated sheets being superimposed in inverted relation relative to each other with the land areas of one of said corrugated sheets extending through the notches in the other corrugated sheet.

4. A metal make-ready blanket for use with printing cylinders comprising a corrugated spring rnetal packing sheet, said corrugated packing sheet including alternately reversing curves formed therein delining parallel and laterally spaced rises and valleys thereover and further including laterally spaced kerf-like notches in said rises extending transversely thereof and spaced longitudinally therealong, said notches terminating downwardly above the lower portions of said valleys and delining spaced land areas of said rises therebetween, and a smooth spring metal packing sheet disposed in overlying relationship to said corrugated packing sheet and contacting said corrugated packing sheet at said land areas in said rises, the said valleys being adapted to engage and be supported by a printing cylinder.

5. The combination of claim 4 including a tympan disposed in overlying relationship to said smooth packing sheet and adapted to maintain said sheets in a unitary blanket for use with impression printing cylinders.

6. A metal make-ready blanket for use with printing cylinders comprising a pair of corrugated spring metal packing sheets, said corrugated sheets each including alternately reversing curves formed therein delining parallel and laterally spaced rises and valleys thereover and further including laterally spaced kerf-like notches formed through each of said rises and terminating downwardly above the lower portions of said valleys, said notches extending transversely of said rises and being spaced apart longitudinally therealong, said corrugated sheets being superimposed in inverted relation relative to each other with the land areas of each of said corrugated sheets projecting through the notches in the other of said corrugated sheets, and a smooth spring metal packing sheet disposed in overlying relationship to said superimposed corrugated packing sheets and contacting the land areas of one of said corrugated sheets and the valleys of the other of said corrugated sheets.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 233,262 10/ 1880 Lockwood 277-160 613,217 10/1898 Allen 101-407 613,219 10/1898 Allen 10i-407 729,683 6/ 1903 Severy et al. 101-407 2,184,448 12/1939 Witchger 267--1 X 2,327,933 8/1943 Shattuck 267-l.5 2,327,934 8/1943 Morton 267-15 FOREIGN PATENTS 381,180 6/1931 Great Britain.

ROBERT E. PULFREY, Primary Examiner.

J. R. FISHER, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A MAKE-READY BLANKET COMPRISING A FIRST RESILIENT PACKING SHEET, A SECOND STIFF BUT FLEXIBLE PACKING SHEET DISPOSED IN OVERLYING RELATIONSHIP TO SAID FIRST PACKING SHEET, A TYMPAN SHEET DISPOSED IN OVERLYING RELATIONSHIP TO SAID SECOND PACKING SHEET AND ADAPTED TO HOLD SAID FIRST AND SECOND PACKING SHEETS AGAINST A PRINTING CYLINDER OR BED WHEREBY A FLEXIBLE IMPRESSION SURFACE MAY BE FORMED THEREON FOR AUTOMATIC ADJUSTMENT DURING PRINTING OPERATIONS, SAID FIRST PACKING SHEET COMPRISING A CORRUGATED SHEET OF STIFF BUT BENDABLE AND RESILIENT MATERIAL HAVING PARALLEL ALTERNATE RISES AND VALLEYS EVELY SPACED THEREOVER DEFINED BY SMOOTH ALTERNATE REVERSING BENDS FORMED IN SAID CORRUGATED SHEET AND FURTHER INCLUDING EVENLY LATERALLY SPACED APART TRANSVERSE KERFS FORMED THROUGH AND SPACED LONGITUDINALLY ALONG EACH OF SAID RISES TERMINATING DOWNWARDLY ABOVE THE LOWER PORTIONS OF SAID VALLEYS AND EXTENDING AT GENERALLY RIGHT ANGLES RELATIVE TO THE CORRUGATIONS OF SAID CORRUGATED SHEET WHEREBY SAID FIRST SHEET IS RENDERED SUBSTANTIALLY RESILIENT, SAID RISES CONTACTING THE SECOND PACKING SHEET AND THE SAID VALLEYS BEING ADAPTED TO ENGAGE AND BE SUPPORTED BY A PRINTING CYLINDER. 